Advertising apparatus.



A. L. frowns; I ADVERTISING APPARATUS. APPLIOATIOI FILED OUT. 27, 1908.

Patented Sept. 19,1911.

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A. L. HOWE. Anvm'mme mgnn'us. APPLIOLIIM! FILED 003; 27. 1903 1,003,7451 1 1 110111611 Sept 11), 1911.

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. APPLIOA'IIOI nun 001.21. 1008. '1, Patented Sept. 19,1911.

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-'A. L. HOWE. ADVERTISING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED OUT. 27, 190? Patented Sept'1'9, 1911.

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UNrTnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR L. HOWE, OF METHUEN," MASSACI-IUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH TO WILLARD R. WHITNEY, OF METI-IUEN, MASSACHUSETTS, AND ONE-FOURTH TO JOHN W. SMITH, ADMINISTRATOR OF WILLIAM SMITH, DECEASED, LATE OF LAW-- RENCE, MASSACHUSETTS.

ADVERTISING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 19, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR L. Hown, of Methuen, county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Advertising Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention particularly relates to an advertising device which is arranged in the form of an opera-house and in which advertising matter is automatically displayed, and has for its object to provide an advertising device of the above character, which is wholly automatic, and in which an advertising strip is automatically conducted from one roll to another across the stage opening while the curtain of the stage is raised, and is conducted in the opposite direction when the curtain is lowered, the automatic raising and lowering of the curtain and the automatic winding and unwinding of the advertising strip being carried on indefinitely, so long as the driving mechanism is actuated.

For a complete understanding of my invention, and the means which I employ in carrying out the above objects, reference is made to the accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure l is a front elevation of a miniature opera-house, provided with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3, showing the main actuating mechanism. Fig. 3 is a side elevation with the outside casing partly broken away. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken on the line ll of Fig. 3. Figs. 5 to 10 are detail views of the automatic switchoperating mechanism. Fig. 11- is a diagrammatical view of the circuits.

In Fig. 1, a miniature opera-house a is indicated in which may be placed various figures which may be automatically operated in any well-known manner, such means forming no' part of my invention. Footlights a and box lights a may be provided, which are alternately lighted and extinguished, as hereafter described.

A drop curtain Z), having a weighted bottom 1), is provided, said curtain being adapted to be wound upon a roll 0 to ralse the same. Said roll 0 is mounted upon a shaftc and said shaft is rotatably held in bearings c", at each end of said roll. .A. friction clutch mechanism is provided for sald roll, comprising a loose member (1, which is rotatably mounted on shaft 0 at one end and a fast member (1, which is splined on said shaft. An operating lever c is pivotally mounted at e on the frame, said lever being arranged. to engage said clutch member d 1' at one end, and to move it into operative relation with the member (Z, while its opposite end constitutes the armature of an electromagnct f, so that when said magnet is encrgizcd the clutch will be operated.

A pair of rolls and It are respectively mounted below and above the stage opening, and the advertising strip 1 is adapted to be wound on both rolls and to be driven from one to the other across the stage opening when said rolls are correspondingly rotated. The lower roll y/ is mounted on a shaft 1 which is journalcd in bearings 1 and said shaft is provided with a friction clutch mechanism at one end which eomprisesli loose member In, which is rotatablv mounted on said shaft, and a fixed member I." which is splined thereon. The upper roll 71 mounted on a shaft It which is journalcd in bearings [L2, and said shaft is likewise provided with a friction clutch mechanism which comprises a loose. member j and a fixed member j which is splined thereon.

A main shaft on is provided, upon which a motor m, indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, may be mounted, and an upright shaft 11,

mounted in bearings n", is adapted to be driven'by said. main shaft m through a" w ormgear n and a worm m, so thatwhen said motor is in operation, said shaft 92. will be constantly rotated in one direction. The loose clutch member j is provided with a worm gear j, and shaftzn is provided at its upper end with a right h'and worm 72. which meshes therewith, and the member is is also provided with a worm gear 1: which is in mesh with a left hand worm n on the lower end of shaft n. The loose members j and (Z are each provided with a peripheral gear, which is arranged in mesh with a loose gear 0, so that said loose members 1 and j will be constantly driven in one direction while the member is will be constantly driven in I as'the armatures of a pair of electro-magnets p and 79 The upper end. of'said lever 72 is adapted'to engagethe clutch member j and move it into operative relation 'with member j when said magnet p is energized, while the lower end of said lever is arranged to engage member 7c and to move the same into operative relation with memberls when the magnet 72 is energized.

An automatically operated switch is provided, which comprises an arm g, which is.

adapted to swing between two adjustably' mounted stops 9' and (1 One wire terminal y is connected to said arm 9 and a contact spring is mounted on said arm in position to engage either of a pair of ,contact plates 9* and according to the position to which said lever is thrown. j

The opposite end of the shaft h from the clutch j, j is provided with a worm k which is adapted to mesh with a worm gear 1-, mounted on ashaft r directly beneath the same, and a pair of spring arms 8 and s are adjustably connected to said worm gear 1', by means of washers s 8 on which said arms are respectively mounted, said washers being mounted on the shaft 0' and being adapted to be clamped against the worm wheel '2" by means of a nut 1- to hold them in any position to which they may be adjusted. Said spring arms 8 and s are shown, for example, as set in diametrically opposite positions, and, when shaft 1" is rotated, they are adapted and arranged to engage the pins and g respectively, and the adjacent sides of the arm 9, as hereafter eX- plained.

Abrake mechanism'for the drop curtain is provided which comprises aspring arm t, which is pivotally mounted at t" on the casing, in such position that one end thereof, may bear in a screw thread 0 on the left hand end of the curtain shaft 0, so that, as said shaft is rotated. to lower the curtain, said spring arm it will be swung inwardly. toward roll I). A stop screw u is mounted in the casing at the inner side of said arm 2?, adjacent the pivot 25", and in position to be engaged by said arm as it is swung inwardly. An opening t in the arm t, of smaller diameter than the head of said screw, permits of ready adjustment of the latter with ascrew driver. A spring finger t is mounted on arm 2- in position toengage a projection c on the end of the shaft 0 when said arm 2? pawl having a transversely extending end.

portion w for engaging the tooth of said ratchet. 5

A spring contact finger b issupported on the frame-work directly beneatht'he roll bf in position to bear on the upper side of a, contact plate b likewise supported, and a finger I) is provided on the inner sidef'of-th'e curtain which is adapted to engage said finger. 6 and lift the .same out of contadt with the plate b as the curtain is raised 20 its fullest extent.

As shown in the diagram in Fig. 11, the

circuit wire a: leads to the main switch a 9 Another branch m is extended about the magnet f and connected to the plate b the plate 6 being connected to the plate g A third branch :0? passes about the electro' magnet'p and on through the box-lights a and is connected to the contact plate g".

Assuming that the switch 9 is in the posi-- tion of the diagram of Fig. 11, so that arm 9 is in contact with plate 9 and that the curtain b is down, and the shaft n is being constantly rotated by the motor, the magnets p andf will be energized causing the clutch member j to be forced against themember 7' and the member to be forced against the member d, so that the roll his" rotated to wind the strip i'thereon, the roll 9 being free to rotate to permit the strip to be unwound therefrom, and the roll 0 is rotated'to raise the curtain 6., As the cur tain b is raised, and after it has been raised to the desired extent, the finger b on the lower end of the curtain will engage the switch finger b and break the circuit through the magnet f, so that clutch (Z, 03' will be released and further winding movement of the roll' 0 will not be caused. As, the curtain is'weighted the pawl 21; and ratchet v are provided to hold the curtain in its raised position, the movement of lever p to operate clutch member carrying theend portion to of the pawl onto the ratchet a, so that it bears thereon during the entire-time that the curtain is being raised, and, when the clutch d is released, therefore, the tooth of the ratchet engages said pawl locking the curtain in raised position during the remainder of the time that the strip i is being wound onto the upper roll it. As the strip is wound on the rollgh the worm wheel 1- will be rotated in the direction of the arrow of Fig. 2, causing the spring finger s to be swung downwardly, so that it finally engages the stop pin 9, as shown in Fig. 6, and, as the strip becomes nearly wound upon the roll it, the worm wheel r will be turned so that the finger s will be placed under a strong tension, as indicated in said Fig. 6-, until it is finally bent sufficiently to permit it to slip by the pin .9 and strike the switch arm 9. The tension under which the finger has been placed will be sufiicient to throw the arm 9 quickly to, its opposite posi- 'gagement with the othercontact plate 9. The result willbe that the circuit through the magnet will be broken and the circuitthrough the magnet 32 will be made. This will cause the lever 72 to be thrown to its opposite position, permitting the clutch members j, j to become disengaged and causing the clutch members la, is to become engaged. This movement of the lever 7) also draws the pawl 'w out of engagement with the ratchet a, so that the curtain b will be liberated and the curtain will become unrolled by reason of its Weighted bottom strip 6. During the winding of the curtain on the roll 0, the arm t will be carried to the extreme outer end of the threaded portion 0 and as the curtain is unwound said arm t .will be carried inwardly or toward the roll 6 by said threaded portion, causing said arm to be pressed against the screw u and the friction of the arm on the thread to be increased as it approaches the inner end of the thread 0 When the curtain is fully down the finger t will have moved in far enough to engage the stop pin a preventing further rotation of said roll 0. The lowering of the curtain is thus gradually arrested and finally stopped.

When the clutch members 70, k are held in operative relation by lever p the roll 9 will be driven and the stripi will be wound thereon, and as the shaft 70 will then be rotated in the opposite direction, the

.- worm gear 1" will'be driven in the opposite direction from that indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2, and the arm 8' will be thrown until it bears against the pin 9 and, when the strip is nearly wound on roll 9, said finger s will slip from said pin and engage the switch arm 9 andthrow it into the initial position, so that the operation above -de scribed will be repeated. The advertising strip will thus be exposed to view when it is} eing earn-:iedin one direction, as the curtain is lifted at the beginning of the movement, and will be obscured from view as soon as" the movement is reversed to wind the strip back as the curtain will then be immediately lowered. I

The toot-lights a will be lighted when the curtain is raised and the box-lights will be extinguished, while the opposite will take I the curtain is unwound, substantially as described.

2. A device of the character described comprising a roll having-a curtain adaptedto be.wound thereon, a constantly driven shaft, clutch-mechanism for connecting said shaft and said roll to wind up the curtain, an engaging device on the curtain for re leasing said ,clutch mechaiiism when the curtain is lifted, a locking device for holding the curtain in raised posltion and means for automatically releasing said locking device to permit the curtain to unwind, substantially as, described. I

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.-

ARTHUR Li Hows.

Witnesses HJB; DAVIS, L. H. I'IARRIMAN. 

